A day after the stunning debut by the Aam Aadmi Party, its convener and winner from New Delhi constituency Arvind Kejriwal was elected as leader of the AAP’s legislative party. Following a two-hour long meeting on Monday evening, the 28 winning candidates of the party in Delhi polls, unanimously chose party chief Kejriwal as captain of their ship.
The party maintained that it is ready for re-polling and it will play a role of constructive opposition. Putting at rest all speculations of any political merger, Kejriwal said that the party is confident that it will be elected by majority if elections are held again. AAP leader also said that his massive margin of victory over Sheila Dikshit was nothing but a reflection of the anger that the people felt towards Sheila. “We rule out any political merger. The AAP will not join hands with any party. We will sit in the Opposition and do out duty but the question of combining with any party does not arise,” he said. Prominent party member and winner from Patparganj Assembly constituency, Manish Sisodia, rejected the suggestion made by the ex-IPS officer and once a member of Team Anna Kiran Bedi of joining hands with BJP.
“We would rather sit in Opposition than forge an alliance with BJP,” said Sisodia, who carried out rally in his constituency for hours. The party which ‘broomed’ out the three-time Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit Government, held a meeting first at Kejriwal’s residence in Kaushambi in the morning and then at the Constitution Club in the capital late in the evening with its 28 newly elected legislators who were confident of getting elected with majority, if elections were held again.
“The veteran parties had distanced themselves from public and become unapproachable. Common people want a leader who appears to them as one of them and not a celebrity. We, as members of the AAP, are not bigwigs, but one of all the citizens of this country who are at the ground level with them,” said Somnath Bharti, an IITian and winner from Malviya Nagar constituency.